Focus on one of the 4 grand challenges
The aim of this call is to identify the third wave of
industry-led challenges in the Industrial Strategy
Challenge Fund, which brings together the UK’s
world-leading research with industry to tackle the
biggest industrial and societal challenges of our time.
£1 billion has been allocated to the first wave of
challenges. A further £725 million has been announced
for wave 2, which will run in 2018 and 2019.
UK industry and research can submit proposals aligned
clearly with at least one of the 4 grand challenges in
government’s Industrial
Strategy.
The grand challenges are:
- artificial intelligence and the data economy
- clean growth
- the future of mobility
- meeting the needs of an ageing society
The opportunity
Proposed challenges should combine the best ideas from
academia and industry to create tangible benefits for
the UK in productivity and economic growth.
Submitted proposals should either be drafted
collaboratively by a consortium of industry and
academia, or be able to provide evidence of an
industry-wide requirement.
You will need to explain and evidence what the
challenge is, the positive impact in addressing it, and
the capabilities and strengths that we already have in
the UK that would help us to become a world-leader in
its research and commercialisation.
The challenge must:
- be compelling, focused, understandable and have a
real benefit if solved
- be industry-led and in an area of existing strength
- take advantage of the depth and expertise of UK
research
- offer a clear opportunity for sustainable growth,
including global markets
- evidence that government support is necessary and
of strategic importance
- increase productivity
Challenges can be of any size. You will be expected to
propose the amount of funding required from government
and from industry to address your proposal.
Expression of interest details
- the expression of interest for challenges opens on
28 February 2018, and the deadline is 18 April 2018
- consortiums must be led by a business or industry
body. Members can be businesses, academic
organisations, public sector bodies, or research and
technology organisations
- you may submit more than one challenge as long as
these are innovative in their own rights and not
interdependent
- there will be a briefing event on 14 March 2018
- at this stage we are interested in proposals for
future challenges only. How funding competitions are
run to solve the challenge and what form they take will
be decided at a later date. We expect these to run in
early 2019 and to start funding successful projects
from April 2019
